Arkansas (2020)

This movie is NOT hard to follow, but it is a little hard to pay attention at first to unless you give it your undivided attention.

The opening scene was good, for example, but they should've slowed it down just a notch (I had to replay it to even realize what happened, but the second time I couldn't understand why I didn't get it the first time). And if you miss this scene, you're gonna be lost the rest of the movie. That's the only reason I comment on this.

This movie has a few nice "schools of thought" (the character's own words), which I found kind of refreshing but depressing, even though I already knew them myself. Good movies have unique elements, and I consider this one of them. If this movie was just about drug dealer revenge and double-crossing (*rolls eyes*), we've definitely got enough of those movies, but this one is different. I'm kind of interested to see how Rotten Tomatoes will rate this movie, actually.

Overall, it's a good movie, especially for the summer (I wonder why I think this, though. Maybe because it takes place in the summer in the south? No idea). .

Was actually gonna buy it before it went on sale for $1, since it was only $2 more to buy it than rent it. Movie prices should always be so cheap. I'd buy a lot more of them instead of rent.

Fmovies: I'd guess that for a lot of people Clark Duke is a face seen in a comedy or another, be it any of the "Kick-Ass" or "Hot Tub Time Machine" films or perhaps the last season of "The Office". "Arkansas" is his very own first full feature, a debut in both directing and writing plus performing one of the main characters, and I'm quite frankly wholesomely surprised. Based on Josh Brandon's novel of the same name, "Arkansas" is an engaging, grimy and subtly funny Coen-esque neo-noir tragedy in five chapters.

By the time I even noticed there's a trailer out, the release of the movie was just a week away, so I went in quite blind. Not to repeat myself, but I truly am pleasantly surprised, I get a lot of kicks out of the modern neo-noirs, small town crime shenanigans, simple folks in way over their head - a vibey sub-genre that I believe Coen Brothers kickstarted, providing endless inspiration with their unique writing and characters who think they're smarter than they actually are.

Kyle (Liam Hemsworth) and Swin (Clark Duke) are the footsoldiers of an Arkansas-based drug empire, trying to work their way up the ladder where on top sits a drug kingpin named Frog, whom Kyle and Swin have never seen. Naturally, one day a particular deal goes wrong for the two boys & the consequences are increasingly deadly. "Arkansas" is split in five chapters, each tells either a portion of the story of Kyle and Swin, or introduces the other characters in the whole wide drug scheme and its history, ultimately weaving together a web which's entirety only the viewer can see. Drug smuggling, drug dealing, schemes, the crime world hierarchy, murder, love, so on... I think it's sure to say some will call it a pointless movie, perhaps a plotless one, or just a tedious experience. Yeah, it's a slow-burn, there's attention to detail, to plot-irrelevant conversations and a lot of it is as aimless as the lives of the two main characters, but it's often where the charm of "Arkansas" lies. Having said that, perhaps it could've done better with a more fueled climax.

The cinematography was kind of a conflictive experience for me. It would seem that "Arkansas" is not a big budgeted movie, despite having such a stellar cast. Speaking of that, great performances all around, if a little too little of John Malkovich. Plot might not relate to that, but the overall atmosphere felt somewhat realistic, and so did the characters and the performances carrying them. For a long time I've hoped Vince Vaughn will stay in the crime genre, for "True Detective", "Cell Block 99" and "Dragged Across the Concrete" were an awesome fit for him, now accompanied by "Arkansas". Fingers crossed for more. So, the cinematography, far from exceptional, but overall great camera work, but a little drab color grading... I craved for a crisper, more elegant aesthetical look. Ears, though, were pleased with an interesting original score and soundtrack, country-like and fitting the atmosphere like a glove.

"Arkansas" is not a very original tale and outfit, but it's a great exercise in its genre, a pleasant experience for fans of such vibes & a highly commendable directional debut. My rating: 8/10. To end it with a quote, "May You Dream of offered tits."

Awesome movie!!! Being from the South myself, the accent and southern knowledge was perfect! Great watch! It kept my interest throughout.. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Arkansas fmovies. That's it. An intelligently written, well directed and well produced, greatly acted and tastefully photographed movie. Stylish and clear headed. Arkansas deserves at least a 7 on IMDB, like a lot of quite slow and clever little gems stuck around the 6. If you love cinema, do not miss this little jewel. Characters are graciously sketched in their lovely, human weirdness. You do not know a lot about them, but you can sense their past in their words, faces and actions. Liam Hemsworth is a little affected in a couple of scenes, but everyone else is credible even when exaggeratedly over the top, like Malkovich. Watch this movie if you want to watch a good, well-narrated and entertaining story. Cinema really needs this kind of productions, even if the ratings tell us that people need less quality.

Loved every minute of it.....intense, dark, witty, introspective,. Kudos to direction and screenplay.

I saw this movie without watching the trailer, without reading anything bah it. Sometimes I do this like a blind buy. The film is slow at times n tries hard to be a cool slick flick. Vince Vaughn saved this film from being a disaster. He once again played a drug dealer like the one from True Detectives, who wants to start afresh but..... The star cast is good, Eden Brolin's got a very different n attractive face. All in all, this one will not leave any impact.